How to increase your chances of getting into nursing school

Danielle curates content for Gap Medics, the world’s leading provider of hospital work experience placements for school and university students.

Danielle curates content for Gap Medics, the world’s leading provider of hospital work experience placements for school and university students.

Getting into to nursing school isn’t easy. There are far too many applicants competing for far too few seats and competition is very fierce for all nursing schools, especially the more reputed establishments. The question then is – is this a universal fact that you have to accept or is there anything you can do to improve your chances of getting in to the nursing school of your choice? While there is no 100% guarantee that you will be accepted, there are still a few things you can do that will help you increase your chances of getting into the nursing school of your choice.

Do your research and start early

Check out the websites of various nursing schools and see what programs they offer and which of them appeal to you. More importantly, find out the prerequisites at each of the nursing schools you are interested in. Ideally, you should start doing your research while you are still in college so you know what you need to do to meet these requirements. If you need to take certain subjects in order to be allowed to apply, take those subjects so that you don’t need to be running around later to get extra credits. The earlier you start working towards your goal, the better your chances of achieving it.

Put together a great application

Your nursing school application is what is the key to getting you into a good nursing school. Highlight your achievements and most important of all, use your application to emphasise your passion for nursing. Make sure your application contains everything that the school has asked for, from transcripts to letters of recommendation and any other documents. Check again whether the school wants the application sent across digitally or whether they would like it posted by traditional mail. It is important to adhere to the guidelines rather than just going by what you feel may be right.

Make sure you send your application on time

It may sound like unnecessary advice but it is surprising how many applicants let time slide by and then realise too late that they’ve not sent out their application. Most schools will not read or even accept any application that comes in after the deadline. For one thing, they would have already received far more applications than they have seats for. And secondly, if you cannot adhere to a simple application deadline, it does not speak well of your efficiency or ability to get things done on time.

Get some work experience

Whether it is mentioned on a particular school’s website or not, work experience can prove to be the tipping point in all nursing schools. Work experience speaks volumes about your interest in nursing and your ability to stick with it through all the ups and downs. Having some work experience or volunteering activity under your belt shows that you are genuinely interested in helping people. It also says that you have a pretty good idea of what a career in nursing involves and you are making an informed decision, which means you are more likely to see the course through. Work experience could be by way of an internship at a hospital or healthcare facility or better still, a nursing placement in a developing country.

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